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→Set list: Well, she also performs the S&M REMIX. Boys just features a small part from the remix, which is Pharrell's chorus. The instrumental is completely new. Till the World Ends isn't listed as the remix, even though it features Nicki Minaj.
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Line 63: Line 63:
# "(Drop Dead) Beautiful" <small>(contains elements of "Inside Out")</small>
# "(Drop Dead) Beautiful" <small>(contains elements of "Inside Out")</small>
# "He About to Lose Me"
# "He About to Lose Me"
# "[[Boys (Britney Spears song)|Boys]]" (contains elements of "Boys" The Co-Ed Remix)
# "[[Boys (Britney Spears song)|Boys]]" <small>(contains elements of "Boys" The Co-Ed Remix)</small>
# "[[Don't Let Me Be the Last to Know]]"
# "[[Don't Let Me Be the Last to Know]]"
# "[[...Baby One More Time (song)|...Baby One More Time]]" / "[[S&M (song)|S&M]]" (Remix)
# "[[...Baby One More Time (song)|...Baby One More Time]]" / "[[S&M (song)|S&M]]" (Remix)

Revision as of 01:13, 27 June 2011

Femme Fatale Tour
Tour by Britney Spears
Promotional poster for 2011 tour
Associated albumFemme Fatale
Start dateJune 16, 2011 (2011-06-16)
End dateNovember 9, 2011 (2011-11-09)
Legs2
No. of shows36 in North America
21 in Europe
57 Total
Britney Spears concert chronology

The Femme Fatale Tour is the sixth concert tour by American singer Britney Spears, in support of her seventh studio album, Femme Fatale. The tour was officially announced in March 2011, with dates for North American venues revealed. It was initially planned as a co-headlining tour with Enrique Iglesias, but he canceled only hours after the announcement. Fashion designer Zaldy Goco created the costumes. The tour is inspired by femme fatales throughout the ages, and features Spears changing personas during the show.

The tour, divided in five segments, portrays a story in which Spears is a secret agent, who is chased by a stalker. The first section features her escaping from prison along with other female inmates. The second segment displays upbeat dance numbers and ends with a performance inspired by Marilyn Monroe. The third section features an Egyptian theme with fireworks and acrobatics. The fourth segment displays energetic routines and motorcycle costumes. The encore begins with a video interlude of Spears capturing the stalker, and is followed by two performances in which she defeats a group of ninjas. The Femme Fatale Tour received mixed reviews from critics. Some described it as her most entertaining show yet and praised Spears's performance, while others criticized her dancing and lack of interaction.

Background

In an interview on Ryan Seacrest's radio show on March 4, 2011, Spears stated she would tour the United States in the "early summer" in support of Femme Fatale.[1] On March 29, 2011, following her performances on Good Morning America, she announced a co-headlining tour with Enrique Iglesias, starting in June 2011. Hours after the announcement, it was reported by Billboard that Iglesias had pulled out of the tour. Ray Wedell of Billboard speculated that the reason may have been that Spears was deemed by news outlets as the headliner, while Iglesias was considered the opening act.[2] The first twenty-six North American dates were also announced on March 29, 2011.[3] The opening acts were announced on April 12, 2011. Spears stated, "This is the Femme Fatale tour and I'm thrilled to have Nicki Minaj, Jessie and the Toy Boys, and Nervo join me and get everyone on the dance floor. Can't wait to take the Femme Fatales on the road." Tickets for select markets went on sale on April 30, 2011, at Ticketmaster and Live Nation's websites.[4] In May 2011, it was announced that Spears would headline Summerfest on July 9, 2011, at the Marcus Amphitheater in Milwaukee. She previously headlined the festival on July 8, 2000, during the Oops!... I Did It Again World Tour, and had to cancel her performance during The Onyx Hotel Tour in 2004 due to a knee injury. Summerfest's entertainment director Bob Babisch said, "It's going to be a great dance party. [...] This is going to be the biggest production we've ever put in the Marcus Ampitheatre. There's a thrust that goes out on the stage about 80 feet, and it's about 80 feet wide, and there's all kinds of things flying in and out."[5] The European tour dates were announced on June 5, 2011.[6]

Development

In March 2011, Spears's manager Larry Rudolph told MTV News that the tour would have a "post-apocalyptic vibe", while commenting that "'Till The World Ends' keeps becoming a theme for us." He also confirmed Jamie King as the tour director and Brian Friedman as the choreographer.[7] On April 21, 2011, Friedman confirmed he had pulled out of the tour due to scheduling conflicts with his own reality series.[8] On April 30, 2011, a video of Spears rehearsing "How I Roll" from Femme Fatale with her dancers surfaced online.[9] In a video interview posted on Spears's official website, she stated, "The Femme Fatale Tour will hopefully just be outrageously spectacular. I'm just hoping that the choreographers will come up with just the most outrageous things, and I'm really excited. This is one of the most excited I've been about a project in a really long time, so I can't wait."[10] On May 11, 2011, Sabi spoke to MTV News at a St. Bernard Project dinner hosted by Spears, stating that she would join her during the performances of "(Drop Dead) Beautiful" at select dates such as Los Angeles, Las Vegas and New York.[11] On June 7, 2011, a video surfaced online of Spears seeing the stage for the first time, along with a soundcheck of the music and staging for "Hold It Against Me". According to Jocelyn Vena of MTV, the stage "has it all: lights, video screens, a funky neon-colored floor, lasers, lifts and giant butterfly wings."[12] In an interview with Entertainment Tonight on June 8, 2011, Spears said about the show,

"I'm really excited. I'm probably going to be extra nervous the day before. We've been working hard for, like, two months now, and everything's coming together really good. [...] [The show] can be kind of [grueling], especially when you're onstage and you're on your eighth number, you get really winded and you're like, 'How can I do the rest of the show?' But I've been training for a while and I actually — before I come to rehearsals — I've been working out and stuff like that so I won't have that predicament."[13]

The costume design was done by Zaldy Goco, who explained, "there's a creative script done by the director, Jamie King, and it's a whole thing about the femme fatale and femme fatales throughout the ages, so we have all kinds of costumes where she's changing personas throughout the show." Goco also commented that the inspiration for the costumes was "Britney herself [...] She's a very sexy girl." Among the outfits that Goco previewed to Extra prior to the beginning of the tour were a pink latex jacket, a nude bodysuit, a Marilyn Monroe-inspired white flowing dress, several gladiator-inspired gold-mirrored options, pink-chrome-studded leather and denim, as well as a "Toxic"-inspired catsuit. For the finale, she was revealed to wear a kimono, with an anime version of herself silkscreened on one sleeve, over a sparkling, black bodysuit with LED lights built into it.[14]

Concert synopsis

After a neon sign reading "Femme Fatale" is lifted from the stage, the show begins with a video introduction in which Spears is arrested by the police after a chasing sequence. As she says "I'm not that innocent", the video screens part and she appears sitting on a metallic throne in a silver costume to perform "Hold It Against Me".[15] She is accompanied by her back-up dancers in white and silver costumes. "Up n' Down" features Spears and her female dancers performing inside cages, with the male dancers looking at them dressed as policemen. After walking to the B-stage in a conveyor belt, Spears puts on a white trench coat and a satin fedora to perform "3". She then goes into "Piece of Me" while floating above the stage in a platform.[16] This is followed by a video intermission that contains the beginning of the music video for "My Prerogative", and in which a stalker reveals that Spears is a secret agent. The next section begins with Spears in a pink latex and lace jacket emerging from inside a bass to perform "Big Fat Bass", while will.i.am appears in the backdrops. She removes the jacket to reveal a nude leotard for the performance of "How I Roll", which features a pink convertible Mini Cooper-like car and her dancers wearing colorful outfits.[16] This is followed by a segment in which Spears and her dancers select a male member from the audience. She then bursts into "Lace and Leather" and performs sensually for him. After a costume change, Spears goes into the song "If U Seek Amy" while wearing a white skirt over a fan, recalling Marilyn Monroe's iconic scene in The Seven Year Itch (1955).[17]

A video interlude in which the stalker talks about femme fatales in history sees the the beginning of the third section. Spears returns to the stage wearing a golden outfit and performs an Egyptian-inspired version of "Gimme More", containing a barge and fireworks. In her next number "(Drop Dead) Beautiful" Spears is surrounded by her dancers carrying picture frames, and includes an appearance by Sabi. She then sings "He About to Lose Me" in a purple coach while her male dancers climb metallic structures. She wears a golden cape for a snake charming number of "Boys" (The Co-Ed Remix).[17] After climbing into a swing, she starts singing "Don't Let Me Be the Last to Know", while an acrobat hangs from it.[16] Another video interlude follows, featuring Spears changing clothes and choosing between different passports inside a hotel room. The final segment features Spears and her dancers dressed in motorcycle gear to perform a medley of "...Baby One More Time" / "S&M", while her next number "Trouble for Me" features Spears and her dancers performing in the B-stage.[17] Accompanied by her female dancers, Spears performs "I'm a Slave 4 U" with gay soft porn in the backdrops,[18] and subsequently a cover of Madonna's "Burning Up" on top of a giant silver guitar.[16] She then brings several fans onstage for a performance of "I Wanna Go". She sings "Womanizer" with her dancers dressed as policemen and thanks the audience.[19] The encore starts with a video interlude in which Spears finally captures the stalker while wearing a kimono. She reappears to perform a martial arts-inspired version of "Toxic", in which she defeats a group of ninjas. At the end of the song, she goes below the stage and returns wearing a black sparkly bodysuit for "Till the World Ends". Halfway through the performance, Nicki Minaj appears on the backdrops rapping her verse of The Femme Fatale Remix of the song. After the song changes back to the original version, Spears starts flying in a platform with giant angel wings. The show ends with Spears and her dancers thanking the audience, as confetti falls and the "Femme Fatale" sign is lowered onstage.[16]

Critical response

Barry Walters from Rolling Stone called the show "possibly her flashiest, fastest moving, and most entertaining production yet." He also added that "the night belonged to Britney: She managed to prove that she's still progressing as a showgirl. Not only that, she's doing it better than even diehard defenders would’ve predicted. At 29, the pop star whose career seemed in danger of ending just a couple years ago has shown that she's back – hopefully this time to stay."[16] Carla Meyer of The Sacramento Bee stated that "Though Spears performed like a pro throughout the show, hitting all her marks, she had shown hesitancy in her movements — natural for the first stop on a tour. But that hesitancy vanished when she put on the denim. She seemed at ease."[17] Jim Harrington of the Oakland Tribune deemed the show as "a mess pretty much from start to finish. The theatrics are awkward and confusing, the dance routines are numbingly bland and old-hat, the song selection is weak and misguided, and Britney's star power, so blinding on tours past, is remarkably dim."[15] Shirley Halperin of The Hollywood Reporter stated it was "entertaining", but Spears "doesn’t quite have that spring in her dance step anymore and who requires a constant barrage of visual distractions while she mostly lip-synchs along to her hits".[19] Kelley L. Carter of MTV commented that "the Spears that captivated the audience at the Staples Center [...] was the old, fun-loving, free-wheeling Spears — with a sexy, showgirl twist. There wasn't much pretense, though those glamazon outfits blinded in the best way possible. Instead, there was just good dance music."[20] Shaunna Murphy of Entertainment Weekly criticized "Britney's complete lack of verbal audience interaction [...] and her obviously diminished dancing ability" but also added that "with her slim waist, her dangerously toned legs, and most importantly her engaged, wide-eyed smile, [Spears] looked happy to be there with us—the crucial element that has been missing from so many Britney shows of late."[21]

August Brown of the Los Angeles Times stated that "the Femme Fatale tour gets its drama by largely erasing — or at least tweaking — the past. [...] Spears manipulates pop’s virgin-whore complex better than just about anyone, and her seamless sweep from lasciviously grinding on an awestruck dude from the audience to the earnest balladry of 'Don’t Let Me Be the Last to Know' [...] felt true to the sweep of her career — she learned that she can control the narrative by vanishing into a club's heat or into literal thin air."[22] Matt Kivel of Variety commented, "Though visually impressive, the show lacked a truly engaging human quality. Spears moved with an almost mechanical detachment, lightly shifting through dance routines without fully letting her body release itself. With her voice heavily processed and laden with backing tracks, she appeared onstage as some strange blend of Michael Jackson, Madonna and Kraftwerk's Ralf and Florian."[23] Steve Palopoli of Metro Silicon Valley said, "Musically, the show is heavy on the hits, although considering Britney as a musical phenomenon is like asking which of Madonna's albums is best. She's a cultural phenomenon, obviously, and the only edicts that seem to have been handed down in regards to the music is 'no lip-synching' (she definitely doesn't) and 'bigger and louder whenever possible.'"[24] Evelyn McDonnell of Spin said that "the idol America loves to hate went all out. Her body perpetually moved, she sang steadfastly into her headset (okay, she's got plenty of digital support, but she doesn't merely lip-sync), and she shimmied through an endless parade of outfits. [...] Having been knocked down by the tabloid press and the public repeatedly in recent years, Spears is now desperately seeking our attention. And she earns it. Haters go home."[18]

Commercial reception

A staff editor for VH1 noted that as of June 16, 2011, 18,000 tickets were sold at discounted prices through Groupon for fifteen of the first twenty-four dates of the tour, including 1,800 at opening night in Sacramento. The Groupon deals for shows in Seattle, Winnipeg, Minneapolis, and Atlanta actually expired before all available discounted tickets were sold. The editor also stated that "the shows look to be under-attended in smaller cities, even as, in metropolitan areas like Greater New York City, new shows have been added. It remains to be seen whether this could have been remedied by better price optimization, or whether the tour’s ambition was more outsized than its actual draw."[25]

Opening acts

Set list

  1. "Hold It Against Me"
  2. "Up n' Down"
  3. "3"
  4. "Piece of Me"
  5. "Big Fat Bass"
  6. "How I Roll"
  7. "Lace and Leather"
  8. "If U Seek Amy"
  9. "Gimme More" (contains elements of "Get Naked (I Got a Plan)")
  10. "(Drop Dead) Beautiful" (contains elements of "Inside Out")
  11. "He About to Lose Me"
  12. "Boys" (contains elements of "Boys" The Co-Ed Remix)
  13. "Don't Let Me Be the Last to Know"
  14. "...Baby One More Time" / "S&M" (Remix)
  15. "Trouble for Me"
  16. "I'm a Slave 4 U"
  17. "Burning Up"
  18. "I Wanna Go"
  19. "Womanizer" (contains elements of "Womanizer" Jason Nevins Club Remix)
  20. "Toxic" (contains elements of "Toxic" Peter Rauhofer Reconstruction Mix Edit)
  21. "Till the World Ends" (contains elements of "Till the World Ends" The Femme Fatale Remix)

Source:[26]

Tour dates

Date City Country Venue
North America[4][27][28]
June 16, 2011 Sacramento United States Power Balance Pavilion
June 18, 2011 San Jose HP Pavilion at San Jose
June 20, 2011 Los Angeles Staples Center
June 22, 2011 Phoenix Jobing.com Arena
June 24, 2011 Anaheim Honda Center
June 25, 2011 Las Vegas MGM Grand Garden Arena
June 28, 2011 Portland Rose Garden
June 29, 2011 Tacoma Tacoma Dome
July 1, 2011 Vancouver Canada Rogers Arena
July 4, 2011 Winnipeg MTS Centre
July 6, 2011 St. Paul United States Xcel Energy Center
July 8, 2011 Chicago United Center
July 9, 2011[A] Milwaukee Marcus Amphitheater
July 12, 2011 Dallas American Airlines Center
July 13, 2011 Houston Toyota Center
July 15, 2011 New Orleans New Orleans Arena
July 17, 2011 Atlanta Philips Arena
July 18, 2011 Nashville Bridgestone Arena
July 20, 2011 Orlando Amway Center
July 22, 2011 Miami American Airlines Arena
July 23, 2011 Jacksonville Jacksonville Veterans Memorial Arena
July 26, 2011 Cleveland Quicken Loans Arena
July 28, 2011 Detroit The Palace of Auburn Hills
July 30, 2011 Philadelphia Wells Fargo Center
July 31, 2011 Washington Verizon Center
August 2, 2011 Uniondale Nassau Veterans Memorial Coliseum
August 5, 2011 East Rutherford Izod Center
August 6, 2011 Atlantic City Boardwalk Hall
August 8, 2011 Boston TD Garden
August 9, 2011 Hartford XL Center
August 11, 2011 Montreal Canada Bell Centre
August 13, 2011 Toronto Air Canada Centre
August 14, 2011
August 22, 2011 Indianapolis United States Conseco Fieldhouse
August 24, 2011 Charlotte Time Warner Cable Arena
August 25, 2011 Raleigh RBC Center
Europe[27][28][29]
September 22, 2011 Saint Petersburg Russia Ice Palace
September 24, 2011 Moscow Olimpiysky Stadium
September 27, 2011 Kiev Ukraine Kiev Palace of Sports
September 30, 2011 Budapest Hungary Budapest Sports Arena
October 1, 2011 Zagreb Croatia Arena Zagreb
October 3, 2011 Zurich Switzerland Hallenstadion
October 5, 2011 Amnéville France Galaxie Amnéville
October 6, 2011 Paris Palais Omnisports de Paris-Bercy
October 8, 2011 Antwerp Belgium Sportpaleis
October 10, 2011 Herning Denmark Jyske Bank Boxen
October 14, 2011 Helsinki Finland Hartwall Arena
October 16, 2011 Stockholm Sweden Ericsson Globe
October 18, 2011 Cologne Germany Lanxess Arena
October 19, 2011 Rotterdam Netherlands Ahoy Rotterdam
October 21, 2011 Montpellier France Arena Montpellier
October 24, 2011 Dublin Ireland The O2
October 25, 2011 Belfast Northern Ireland Odyssey Arena
October 27, 2011 London England The O2 Arena
October 30, 2011 Birmingham LG Arena
November 6, 2011 Manchester Manchester Evening News Arena
November 9, 2011 Lisbon Portugal Pavilhão Atlântico
Festivals and other miscellaneous performances
A This concert is part of Summerfest 2011.[6]

References

  1. ^ Turner, Sadao (March 4, 2011). "Britney Spears Talks New Album, Toned Boyfriend & Upcoming Tour [Audio]". RyanSeacrest.com. Retrieved April 12, 2011.
  2. ^ Kaufman, Gil (March 30, 2011). "Enrique Iglesias Pulls Out Of Britney Spears Tour". MTV. MTV Networks. Retrieved April 12, 2011.
  3. ^ Wedell, Ray (March 29, 2011). "Britney Spears To Tour With Enrique Iglesias This Summer". Billboard. Prometheus Global Media. Retrieved April 13, 2011.
  4. ^ a b c d e Live Nation (April 12, 2011). "Pop Superstar Britney Spears Announces Special Guest Nicki Minaj to Join the Highly Anticipated All Female Femme Fatale Tour" (Press release). PR Newswire. Retrieved April 12, 2011.
  5. ^ Staff, WISN-TV (May 16, 2011). "Britney Concert Will Be Biggest Production Ever At Summerfest". WISN-TV. Retrieved June 11, 2011.
  6. ^ a b Sinclair, Jessica (June 5, 2011). "Britney Spears Announces 'Femme Fatale' European Tour Dates". Long Island Press. Morey Publishing. Retrieved June 16, 2011.
  7. ^ Kaufman, Gil (March 31, 2011). "Britney Spears Tour Will Have Post-Apocalyptic Vibe, Manager Says". MTV. MTV Networks. Retrieved April 12, 2011.
  8. ^ Lane, Laura (April 21, 2011). "Brian Friedman Brings Britney Spears Back to Her Dancing Roots". OK!. Northern & Shell. Retrieved May 22, 2011.
  9. ^ Copsey, Robert (April 30, 2011). "Video: Britney rehearses for 'Femme Fatale' tour". Digital Spy. Hachette Filipacchi (UK) Ltd. Retrieved May 22, 2011.
  10. ^ Dinh, James (May 3, 2011). "Britney Spears Says Femme Fatale Tour Will Be 'Spectacular'". MTV. MTV Networks. Retrieved May 22, 2011.
  11. ^ Vena, Jocelyn (May 3, 2011). "Sabi To Join Britney Spears At Femme Fatale Shows". MTV. MTV Networks. Retrieved May 22, 2011.
  12. ^ Vena, Jocelyn (June 7, 2011). "Britney Spears Offers A Glimpse At Femme Fatale Stage". MTV. MTV Networks. Retrieved June 11, 2011.
  13. ^ Vena, Jocelyn (June 8, 2011). "Britney Spears Will Be 'Extra Nervous' For Femme Fatale Tour Kickoff". MTV. MTV Networks. Retrieved June 11, 2011.
  14. ^ Vena, Jocelyn (June 15, 2011). "What Will Britney Spears Wear On Her Femme Fatale Tour?". MTV. MTV Networks. Retrieved June 16, 2011.
  15. ^ a b Harrington, Jim (June 19, 2011). "Review: Britney belly flops in San Jose". Oakland Tribune. MediaNews Group. Retrieved June 19, 2011.
  16. ^ a b c d e f Walters, Barry (June 17, 2011). "Britney Spears Proves She's Still Got It at 'Femme Fatale' Tour Kickoff". Rolling Stone. Jann Wenner. Retrieved June 17, 2011.
  17. ^ a b c d Meyer, Carla (June 17, 2011). "Spears finds groove, Minaj mesmerizes in Sacramento concert". The Sacramento Bee. The McClatchy Company. Retrieved June 17, 2011.
  18. ^ a b McDonnell, Evelyn (June 20, 2011). "Haters Go Home: Britney Dominates L.A. Show". Spin. Spin Media LLC. Retrieved June 21, 2011.
  19. ^ a b Halperin, Shirley (June 21, 2011). "Britney Spears at Staples Center: Concert Review". The Hollywood Reporter. Prometheus Global Media. Retrieved June 21, 2011.
  20. ^ Carter, Kelley L. (June 21, 2011). "Britney Spears Captivates L.A. With Fresh And Classic Hits". MTV. MTV Networks. Retrieved June 21, 2011.
  21. ^ Murphy, Shaunna (June 21, 2011). "Britney Spears and Nicki Minaj live in L.A. on the Femme Fatale Tour: EW's review". Entertainment Weekly. Time Warner. Retrieved June 21, 2011.
  22. ^ Brown, August (June 21, 2011). "Live review: Britney Spears at Staples Center". Los Angeles Times. Tribune Company. Retrieved June 21, 2011.
  23. ^ Kivel, Matt (June 21, 2011). "Variety Reviews - Britney Spears". Variety. Reed Business Information. Retrieved June 21, 2011.
  24. ^ Palopoli, Steve (June 20, 2011). "Britney Spears at HP Pavilion". Metro Silicon Valley. Metro Newspapers. Retrieved June 21, 2011.
  25. ^ Staff, Reporter (June 16, 2011). "Five Burning Questions About Britney's Femme Fatale Tour". VH1. MTV Networks. Retrieved June 21, 2011.
  26. ^ Masley, Ed (June 23, 2011). "Britney Spears 'Femme Fatale' tour a giddy pop spectacle". The Arizona Republic. Gannett Company. Retrieved June 25, 2011.
  27. ^ a b "Femme Fatale Tour Dates". BritneySpears.com. Retrieved 17 June, 2011. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |accessdate= (help); Cite has empty unknown parameter: |1= (help)
  28. ^ a b "Britney Spears - Concert Schedule". Pollstar. Archived from the original on 5 June,2011. Retrieved 5 June, 2011. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |accessdate= and |archivedate= (help)
  29. ^ http://www.digitalspy.co.uk/music/news/a323316/britney-spears-announces-uk-femme-fatale-tour-dates.html
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